A night at Croft Manor
by Iris-Stephenie
Summary: Have you ever thought what kind of mother Lara would make? read! After the explosion in tomb raider Underworld, everything has returned to normal for the ever famous lady Lara Croft; what will happen when a stubborn naughty child is found in the garden?
1. Coincidence

**When I asked someone what kind of mother Lara would actually make, they said "I can't even imagine Lara being a mother, my mind shows "error"." And I thought it would make an interesting fanfic; a child that sticks to her because he is alone.**

**A fanfic for those who love classic Lara, mind you writing about classic Lara is absolutely my forte; the events take place after Tomb Raider Underworld, enjoy!And post reviews if you liked!**

**I do not own Lara Croft or any character of the franchise. **

**A night at Croft Manor**

**Chapter 1: Coincidence**

The weather was somehow similar to Southern Mexico; to dispel any doubts, London would get caught in torrential rain and gale-force winds, causing the windows to emit rattling sounds. It had almost been some months since the Croft Manor had undergone restoration after it went up in flames; much of the funding nonetheless, had been provided by the wealthy countess of Abingdon on her own, any other relatives had disavowed any involvement, only to deepen the growing rift between her and the other Croft aristocrat members.

Lady Croft boldly entered the mansion's colossal garden, the heavy rain drops underneath her black leather boots splashed audibly with protest; the fountain was being filled with rippling waves which reflected the distorted image of the grey sky. Lara folded her checked umbrella as soon as she entered her home, dressed in her Coastal Thailand outfit, calmly closing the massive wooden door with one hand

Zip was sitting at a computer, rapidly getting up as soon as he caught sight of her

"Hey Lara, you back? What took you so long?"Inquired Zip casually, her umbrella forced him to offer a passing remark

" By the way, what's with the umbrella thing? You never take one, nope, not in a million years… hah unless something's really changed!"

Lara flipped a grey switch to turn the lights on, trying to justify her decision afterwards

"Hardly do we face these kinds of rain in London, Zip but if we do, I'll virtually ensure that I won't get soaked. If I did however, that would not make a difference either." She flashed him a sly smile. Her kind-hearted butler, Winston, dismounted the grand staircase to join them. Lara turned her head to face him

"You're here Lady Croft? I regret to inform you that we have found a child in the front yard. He was soaked and unconscious."

"A child? Here?" she raised an eyebrow with disbelief, as if it was the least likely thing to happen in the universe.

"Yeah, exactly what I wanted to tell you, it seems your sumptuous palace appeals to everyone, duchess of Cambridge" interrupted Zip sarcastically.

"Well that's strange. Very shocking indeed, where is he?" asked Lara in her cultivated British accent.

"My apologies but we carried him to your bedroom. He is resting there; I assume it will take some time before he speaks a word. I hope you don't mind. "Winston stated apologetically.

"Of course not, Winston. So, he is still unconscious you said?"

"Unfortunately, yes. We are not aware of his parents' identity either, it would be best to take him to a police station nearby."

"I see… thanks. You should get some rest." Lara took off her rucksack after she finished speaking with Winston, rapidly unzipping it; she brought out one of her state-of-the-art gadgets, carelessly throwing it over to Zip. Fortunately, Zip managed to catch it in time, simultaneously frowning and blinking; God, when was she going to stop acting like this? It contained some pictures of an archaeological site.

"You would be dead if you hadn't caught it; see what you can find about these ruins. I already have some theories but still need concrete evidence. Until then, I'll go and check if he ever recovers." She clearly articulated everything before elegantly ascending the colossal broad wooden staircase which split two sides halfway to the second floor. The photo on the tall enormous marble fireplace was still hanging intact after the explosion.

Lara slowly sauntered along the endless corridors with enormous dignity before turning sideways to gently push the knob. It gave a slight creak before revealing the spacious room with the innumerable antique objects situated in; from china vases and tiny ornaments to a great chandelier and gigantic glass windows. The double king-sized bed however, was located at the centre; it was holding a small cute boy with quite chubby cheeks and dark brown hair; the boy was tightly clinging to the soft pillow as though he had never found a place this warm in his entire life. Lara resolutely decided to turn on her heel and leave the room, maybe he was too innocent to wake up at that point. She was just about to walk away when she heard someone,

"Stay…" At first she was slightly hesitant, did she really hear someone? But all of the hesitation washed away when the voice insisted again.

"Stay, please!" it was the boy, he was speaking with her.

Lara turned around and opened the door fully this time to face the child who had just opened his big green eyes,

"You're finally awake; are you feeling any better?" Lara questioned with a slight trace of empathy,

"No, I'm exhausted." He retorted with childish stubbornness. Lara leaned against the side of the door, considering the possibilities. She finally answered in a deep tone

"Just rest. Visit me in the foyer tomorrow; we'll discuss things then."


	2. Temple of Mithra

Replies to Reviews for " Coincidence":

Remuslupinlover50:  
Sure! Enjoy! Here we go!

I would also like to thank the followers and those who have added the fanfic to their favourite lists and also all the readers who have dedicated their time to reading this fic.

**The sentences in italic are mainly flashback and thoughts.**

**A night at Croft Manor**

**Chapter 2: Temple Of Mithra**

Intense light streamed through the wide stone-framed windows, bringing out the glittering reflections of polished marble stone used in the manor. People were showing their vibrant colours, and everyone was going to experience the mundane daily routine which was defined for them; not for Lara however, after all who on earth could claim adventures are mundane? Although adventures were not boring, some quite boring procedures had to be applied in order to "cause" one of those adventures. These included gathering information on the specific archaeological site, initial preparations for the expeditions and some other activities of less value.

"Zip…" Lara addressed him, suddenly appearing behind like a ghost. She was wearing a black tank top with the trousers from Coastal Thailand.

"Yeah! Can't you at least make a sound? You scared life out of me!"Zip retorted quickly after spitting out his coffee with a series of vague gesticulation, fully turning around to face her.

"I do apologise…"she could not stop herself from grinning slyly; catching people off guard was one of the various fields she excelled at; she was used to waking up very early.

"But it's very important. What could you find about the ruins?"Lara brought out the gadget from somewhere near her holsters, twirling it with her fingertips

"Well, I'm almost sure they are somehow connected to the Persian Empire." Zip folded his arms, narrowing his eyes to get a better view, mostly to double-check that the pictures were still the same.

"Exactly,…Mithra" Lara whispered to herself, furrowing her brow while turning her gaze on the floor

"What?"

"The Persian goddess of light; that is her temple."She lightly squeezed the gadget in her hand, trying to indicate some emphasis.

"So this goddess has a temple that has remained this intact after over five thousand years? That can't be!" Zip suddenly extended his arms, starting to pace back and forth in the tech room; this was what he usually did when deeply contemplating.

"The mystery exactly resides in this, Zip; I need you to find the exact coordinates of the other temples resembling this one. That is the only way of putting the pieces together."Lara tightly folded her arms, walking around as well but with a much slower pace.

"This bears investigating." She quietly whispered after finally standing still.

"By the way, did you get that boy to talk?" Zip suddenly remembered.

"No,…" Lara exhaled; she tightened the grip on her left arm before confidently adding

"Apparently he was willing to make no effort at holding a conversation with me. We're supposed to meet now."

"what do you mean he was not willing to talk to you?"Zip raised an eyebrow

"He said he was too tired."Lara bent forward to tighten something on her leather boots.

"Dude!" Zip laughed loudly

"I'll go and see what his next justification is. Good luck Zip." She stated in a deep tone before placing the gadget back in her belt, heading to the dining room with dignity.

"Thank you Mr. Winston. It's so kind of you. Oh, here comes that cold lady" The boy was speaking to Winston, and Lara heard what he said as she entered. The little boy was having full breakfast thanks to the Tomb Raider.

_You never have to be cold my Lara, if you don't want to be._

A chill ran down her spine when she was reminded of what her mother had told her when she was nine.

"Morning." Lara said after the two noticed her tall figure and radiating presence. She somehow non-verbally dismissed Winston.

"Good morning, Lara. My little boy, she is going to have a word with you. "said Winston kindly before leaving the room.

Lara took a seat across him. She did not know where to start from, she had never had any children nor had she experienced being with one for even a short time; all of them were annoying and wasted one's time. It was something weird she had never come across; maybe it was harder than killing a dinosaur.

"So,…" Lara looked through his big green eyes; his eyes were sharp, but Lara's were sharper; no one was able to look at her undeniably powerful eyes directly. The boy turned his gaze on the table.

"Can I have the honour of knowing your name?"She continued coherently

"Jake Anderson." He timidly said.

"May I ask what has brought you to this place, Jake?" inquired Lara softly, resting her fingertips against the wooden surface of the table, as if she was interrogating a prisoner.

"Are you a princess?" Jake swiftly changed the subject.

"Princess of what?"she partly disliked the idea of changing the topic like that.

"Those in fairy tales."

"No…" she found herself slightly chuckling before saying

"I am no such thing; what makes you think so? Those are just stories. They can't exist in reality."

"But myths do, don't they? I'm glad you're not one of them. They are just some damsel in distress." He said before noiselessly swallowing a quick sip of tea.

"Who are your parents?"Lara was growing increasingly impatient.

"Are those guns real?"He bent down the table to point towards the twin pistols situated in her double holsters.

"Yes, they are. Now you'd better answer my question. " _Damn it, _she had killed innumerable armed men, she had overcome thousands of wild dinosaurs, she had dodged a bunch of bullets without a single bulletproof vest, she had somersaulted over a million death traps in some really creepy ruins ; yet she did not know how to get the answer from a young stubborn boy who was master at eluding things .

"How can you not know? You're my mother!" Jake shouted hysterically, he shouted so loudly that if there had been people on every spot of the manor, all of them would have certainly heard.

Lara froze; she was completely taken aback; having taken every possibility into account, everything, this was certainly not what she was expecting; although she knew the boy might try to tell some sorts of lies, this lie was the strangest one; why would he do this? The arcane Lara inhaled a deep breath before answering with utter composure, trying to calm the boy who had just raised his voice

"No, I'm not. You've simply mistaken me for someone else. I have no children and I have not adopted any"

"You're my mother; my mother is Lara Croft, the world-famous archaeologist. You explore dangerous tombs."

"I do, but that does NOT prove I'm your mother." She was getting really annoyed and worse, she did not know how to answer a boy who knew absolutely nothing about logic.

Jake pretended to be deaf after that instant; he did not look at her anymore, continuing to eat his breakfast.

"BLOODY HELL!"Lara pounded the table in frustration before quickly leaving the room. Children were intolerable.


End file.
